Juicy

10 years ago

Australia's Honeytrap Scandal

While it’s probably true that you’ve never heard of Australian Defense Minister Joel Fitzgibbon, a honeytrap scandal is almost too good to pass up: According to The Independent, the Australian defense department is investigating Fitzgibbon's relationship with Chinese-born businessman Helen Liu, who is reportedly in contact with senior Chinese officials. She also paid for Fitzgibbon to take trips to Beijing and Shanghai in 2002 and 2005, which he failed to disclose until recently. Fitzgibbon contends that Liu has been a close family friend for 16 years and that the charges are retaliation for the major defense department reforms he's instituting. Defense officials are investigating media reports that the department spied on Liu and the Fitzgibbon family and then leaked information to the media.